A reference to an unavailability; inaccessible: Mary asked, "James, why were you absent from work yesterday?"

David gave Julia a very absent stare as if he didn't understand what she was saying.

To stay away from something: Debra and Amanda were absenting themselves from the meeting because of the bad weather.

The chairman asked, "Why did you absent yourself from the meeting yesterday?"

With permission, Antonio, Danny, and Luis have absented themselves from attending the lecture at the university the following day.

The members of the club were absenting themselves from the golf course because of the rain.

1. Regarding a person who is preoccupied, forgetful, or careless as a result of some kind of distraction: It took the absent-minded man a long time to find his glasses which were on top of his head.
2. Descriptive of an individual who is lost in thought or shows a preoccupation with something else: The absentminded writer couldn't remember where he put his notes for the new chapter of his book.

1. A low level of attention or an intense attention to a single object of focus that makes a person unaware of what is going on around him or her: Absentmindedness is clearly a part of everyone's life when something is merely inconvenient, such as missing a familiar turnoff on the highway, or some are very serious as when absentmindedness can cause accidents, injury, or even a loss of life.

Jeff's absentmindedness caused him to be late because he took the wrong public transportation to work.

2. A preoccupation with something that is so great that the ordinary demands of attention on something else are ignored: Cheryl was so lost in her absentmindedness that she was unaware of where she was or what she was supposed to be doing there.